GANGNEUNG, South Korea (AP) — Shani Davis labored across the line, gulping for air, a shell of what he once was in a clapskate.
The years can be cruel that way.
"It's hard to stay on the top forever," said Belgium's Bart Swings, who went in the same pair with Davis and beat him to the finish by more than a full second over 1,500 meters — a rout in speedskating terms. "Shani had an incredibly high level. I think with his highest level, he could still win here. But, of course, he's getting on in age now.